Why We Need Air Ambulances
Time is a very important factor for agencies providing emergency medical services. Not only must the patient be provided with immediate medical care, but also he or she must be transported to a proper medical facility as soon as possible. If medical help reaches the patient a few seconds late it could result in the death of the patient. To reach patients in critical health conditions quickly various improvements have been made in the recent times. One such improvement that allows fast and efficient response in emergency situations is the air ambulance.
In the beginning, air ambulances were just used to transport patients to hospitals. Now, they carry various equipments that can immediately provide extensive medical care to a person before taking them to a proper medical facility. Sometimes the medical care provided by the air ambulance is enough and it is not necessary to transport the patient to a hospital.
Air ambulances can be great help in places that regular ambulances cannot access. They are dispatched immediately to remote areas where ground ambulances cannot reach quickly. Like the traditional ambulances, air ambulances have a group of onboard medical personnel and necessary equipment like ECG, ventilators, medicine and stretchers.
It was the armed forces that first developed the concept of an air ambulance. They used aircraft to carry their wounded back to camp for treatment. In the early 1950s, it was the army that used aircraft completely dedicated to providing emergency medical assistance to its soldiers. Later on air ambulances were developed for civilian use as well. They have become a great help in areas that are inaccessible by road.
Pilots flying an air ambulance have to undergo much more training than those flying non-emergency flights. This is done to ensure the flight safety of the patients while they are being transported. In fact, pilots must get accredited by proper authorities before they become qualified enough to fly these ambulances. The number of medical staff present in the aircraft depends on the mission of the ambulance. Air ambulances being used just for transportation will have a crew of medical technicians, paramedics, flight nurses and sometimes physicians. On the other hand doctors and nurses mostly staff ambulances providing critical care. Sometimes air ambulances are sent to support other ground based emergency medical services. Here, they do not transport the patient but carry medical personnel to the scene of the emergency. In such cases the medical crew consists of physicians, surgeons, trauma specialists, anesthetists, advance care paramedics and nurses. Later the patient is transported by ground ambulance to a hospital.
Air ambulance services are also known as medical flights or medevac. They are provided by a wide variety of organizations and firms. Some of the firms charge fees for availing their services while others are government funded or charity funded. A lot of business groups also maintain their own air ambulance services. A wide variety of aircraft including fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft are used as air ambulances. As more and more people understand the benefits of these flying ambulances, we can expect a lot of advancements in the field of air ambulance services.
C. Graper is the author of this article on Medical Flights. Find more information about Air Ambulance here.
Article from articlesbase.com
